Archive for the ‘Corolla’ Category

Do you avoid drinking out of clear plastic water bottles, using antiperspirants with aluminum, or cooking in non-stick pans? Use a water purifier and ionizer everywhere you go, always buy organic, mind your cold-water fish list, and have your tap water checked yearly?

If so, we've found either a new source of anxiety in your life or a handy tool to factor into your next car purchase.

HealthyStuff.org is a relatively new information portal for the Ann Arbor, Michigan-based Ecology Center, which uses an X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) device to test interior components in vehicles for substances "with known toxicity, persistence, and tendency to...

It's obvious from the comments on this site and others in the High Gear Media family that Cash-for-Clunkers remains a hot-button issue, and new data about the program is likely to fuel the fire: according to stats from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, most car buyers used Cash-for-Clunkers to swap out their domestic ride (frequently a Ford Explorer or F-150) for a foreign model. The notable exception: Michigan, where over 81% of Cash-for-Clunkers trade-ins went toward the purchase of a domestic automobile. Other states along the Rust Belt leaned slightly in Detroit's direction, but on the whole, 57% of Americans ditched...

Ever since General Motors announced plans to pull out of the NUMMI plant in Fremont, California, its partner in that venture -- Toyota -- has been evaluating what to do with its own operations there. There's been much speculation as to whether Toyota would continue production on a limited basis, find a new partner, or sell its stake in the plant entirely.

It appears the matter has now been decided: according to Japan's Asahi Shimbun, Toyota will end operations at NUMMI by the March 2010 (although the company itself says no official decision has been reached). Assuming that information is accurate, Toyota will need to shift production of the...